All We Have

by Len Webster

  “Please, put her on the phone. I need to talk to her. I need to hear from her that she’s okay,” Stevie begged.

  “I told you, Miss Appleton. Miss O’Connor is currently unavailable at the moment. I can tell her you called.”

  “Serge, please. Where is she?”

  The European man made a loud sigh into the speaker. “She’s in a meeting with her father, discussing her … future.”

  “What?” Stevie breathed. “She didn’t …”

  “She broke her deal. I’ll tell her you called. Goodbye, Miss Appleton.”

  Stevie pressed ‘end call’ and stared at her phone.

  “Stephanie,” Julian said, worry evident in his voice.

  Stevie craned her neck and her vibrant blue eyes bore into his. They shone with unshed tears. “What did you do?” she asked him.

  Rob opened his mouth and quickly shut it, not sure if she’d understand. After he had taken a deep breath, he said, “I fucked up, and I think this time I fucked up for good.”

  “Thanks,” Ally said to her bodyguard once he handed her back her phone.

  “She sounded worried about you,” Serge revealed.

  The pang of guilt exploded in her chest. She hadn’t wanted Stevie to find out that way. But she had no idea how to explain her abrupt leaving. When Stevie had left for England, she had a legitimate reason. Charles, her ex-boyfriend and life saviour, lived there. He knew Stevie’s pain. Whereas Ally just needed away from Melbourne and everything associated with Robert Moors. Betraying her best friend had been a necessity she wished she hadn’t needed to make.

  But Stevie would have stopped her. She had no doubt about it.

  “I know. But I just had to.”

  “I understand, piccola. I do,” he said in a gentle voice.

  Last night, after she had gotten into the black Jaguar, her father had taken her to the hospital and sat with her for several hours, waiting for a doctor. In the end, Ally had a couple of stitches on her bottom lip. When she had gotten back to their apartment near the harbour, Ally had gone into her bedroom and fallen asleep in a bed that didn’t feel like her own. This morning when she’d woken up, her father revealed that her mother was in Hong Kong for a fashion festival and that her father would see her in the office once she got dressed and was ready. He’d kissed her goodbye and then left. It was strange to see her father so nice. He was usually so brute and terrifying.

  Wanting to stall for a few minutes, Ally had convinced Serge to stop by a frozen yogurt store near the company’s headquarters. Whenever she was nervous over talks with her father, frozen yogurt was her go-to. They had sat towards the back of the store and away from prying eyes. The media hadn’t gotten word that she had returned. And frankly, she wanted it kept that way. She wasn’t looking her best. Remove the busted lip, cut eyebrow, and cheek and she appeared miserable. But that was because she was. Rob had torn out her heart, shredded it, and given it to Jewel to throw on the ground piece by piece like petals scattered by a flower girl at a wedding.

  Ally used her fluorescent orange spoon to move the coconut jelly pieces in her frozen watermelon-flavoured yogurt. She had no idea what her father had planned. But a deal was a deal. An O’Connor didn’t back out, so it was time to face the music. She had sabotaged herself in order to have a legitimate reason to come home. Her father wouldn’t question her if it looked authentic.

  “I thought my life was bad before. I guess it’s just gonna get worse. More club appearance and more pretending. There’ll be more articles written about me,” she pointed out. “More articles that mothers will show their daughters to tell them not to be like. I guess they’ll be brought up right.”

  “Maybe things might be different,” Serge said, hopeful.

  She gave him a small smile. “I’d like to think so. But hey, at least, I own a nice New York apartment.”

  “Tangible items can never replace love or mend a broken heart, piccola.”

  Ally sighed. “I believed in the little white lies I told myself because the truth wasn’t giving me a positive outlook on life. The little white lies gave me hope. They breathed life into me when I couldn’t. They gave me something worth fighting for … But I guess that’s why it’s first love. But aren’t I lucky that my first is also my last?”

  “It’s not a bad thing if you can never find someone to replace that void. Learn to live without him and you’re stronger. You will learn to love yourself. And that is a life lesson worth learning and experiencing.”

  “For a bodyguard, you’re quite insightful,” she teased, provoking the smile on his face.

  “And for a millionaire heiress and socialite, you’re the kindest person I have ever met. It’s been an honour to work for you.”

  Ally’s eyes widened and she set her frozen yogurt cup down. “You’re quitting?”

  He shook his head. “No, piccola. I can’t leave you. Would you like to sit here a bit longer before we see your father?”

  Reaching over, she held onto his fingers and gently squeezed. “Yeah, I’d like that. Would you still think I’m kind when I go and do all the things I used to?”

  “I know the real you, Ally. I will always think you’re kind.”

  Ally sat in the backseat of her family’s Jaguar and watched as the car drove past O’Connor Investments’ headquarters. Twisting to look out the window, she was correct. Her eyes weren’t deceiving her. Serge had driven right past it.

  “Ummm, Serge?”

  He looked at her from the rearview mirror. “Yes, Ally?”

  “You missed the building,” she pointed out.

  “We have to go somewhere first. We’re not too far,” he explained vaguely.

  She sat properly on the leather seat and nodded as she stared at the Sydney CBD. It was so strange to be back. No trams. Instead of the Yarra was the harbour. Her favourite part of Sydney was the Harbour Bridge; someday, she’d climb it. When she was better, she had promised herself, but she never got around to doing so. Serge hadn’t lied, minutes later and they had pulled up to an apartment building on Kent Street.

  “Serge, what are we doing here?” she asked.

  Her bodyguard removed his seat belt and said nothing as he got out of the car. Then the passenger door opened and he held it open for her. Ally slid across the back seat and took his hand as she got out of the car. She tilted her head back and took in the large building. It appeared new. It could have been possibly renovated. Serge locked the car and led her into the building. He nodded at the concierge and that had only heightened her curiosity. Once he led her into the elevator, he pressed the ‘thirty’ button, the last floor on the elevator panel; he produced a card from his jacket pocket and swiped it through the reader. The metal doors closed and the elevator ascended. From the corner of her eye, she noticed Serge nodding along with the jazz music. But before she could point it out, the elevator came to a stop.

  To her surprise, the doors opened to a grand and spacious apartment. The first thing that caught her eye was the views of the Western and Northern Harbour, as well as the bridge. It was beautiful. The apartment had a beige and subtle brown palette. Only several bold pieces of colour stood out. One of them being a grand piano. Before she was able to take in more of the stunning apartment, Serge had already begun to walk farther into it. She followed, unsure of where he was going. Then he stopped at a dark oak door and knocked once.

  “Serge,” she whispered. “Who lives here?”

  He smiled at her and then opened the door. He gestured for her to enter first and Ally took a careful step inside the large study. The moment she was inside, her brows met in confusion at the sight of her father sitting behind the desk.

  Smiling, her father said, “Welcome home, Allison.”

  “What?” she blurted out in surprise.

  “When you said you were coming home last night, I had my assistant meet me here with the real estate agent this morning. I had bought this place for you last week for when you came home. I realised that you were old enou
gh to live on your own,” he explained.

  Ally approached the desk, staring at her father in disbelief. “So you bought me a penthouse apartment?”

  “Yes, do you like it?”

  “It’s extravagant,” she pointed out.

  He hummed. “But almost double the price of your New York apartment you purchased last night.”

  Ally sighed and took the seat she stood next to. “We’re throwing money at our problems.”

  Her father leant in closer. “Were you happy in Melbourne?”

  “No,” she admitted. “At times, I was. But being in Melbourne made me realise just how small I really am. How insignificant I am.”

  “Is that why you broke the deal?”

  No.

  I broke it because of Rob.

  “No. The only way I could come home and return to my old life was if I spent money. And I have everything else and couldn’t think of anything but an apartment in New York for when I visit. And an O’Connor never backs out of a deal. No matter what.”

  He nodded. “We have to discuss how we go forward with this deal.”

  Ally’s body felt like it lost its strength. The terms of the agreement were to continue. “Whatever you want, I agreed to. More appearances. More dates. Having the paparazzi follow. I don’t mind. Just tell me when and where.”

  Her father stood up, letting the view of the harbour become a magnificent background. “I have an event I’d like you to be at on Saturday. There are some men I’d like you to meet.”

  That was how it always started. Always some men she’d have to meet. Coerce them to make a deal with her father with the promise of social supremacy. Ally was about to become everything she hated once more.

  “It’s your last one, Allison.”

  She blinked at him. “What did you just say?” Her hopeful heart raced.

  “It’s your last event. Then I’d like you to join the company. You do own more shares than I do. I would love for you to take up a position that suits you and for you to enrol in the university of your choice.” He paused, rounded the desk, and sat on the corner, taking her hands in his. “Your brother called me and he’ll be stepping down from the company’s Melbourne director’s role. Adam will take over and I’ll announce it all on Saturday. There will be new board members as chosen by Adam.”

  “You want me to actually work for O’Connor Investments?”

  His lips made a tight line. “I had dreams that your brother would be CEO. But after his ex-fiancée married another man in January and he signed his shares over to you, I knew it would never happen. I overlooked your potential and I’m sorry, Allison. I will teach you, and you’ll learn from the bottom up. I believe that you will make this company even greater.”

  “You want me to be CEO?” Ally asked, having to hear it herself.

  “Someday, when I retire, yes,” he confirmed. “I’d like to make you the temporary director of operations while we sort out the paperwork with your brother and Adam. It means no more of that old life I pushed you into. It also means business attire. Is that okay?”

  Ally shot out of her seat and hugged her father. “Yes,” she cried into his chest.

  “I won’t be stepping down for a long time, Allison.” His hand rubbed her back.

  “I know, but thank you. I get to be a better person and not the person on those magazines. I get to be someone the family can be proud of someday.” Ally pushed off her father, smiled at him, and then spun around to find Serge with the biggest smile she had ever seen him make. She ran up to him and threw her arms around him. “I get to make you proud of me, Serge,” she whispered.

  His cheek settled on the top of her head. “I’ve always been proud of you, piccola.”

  “What if she forgot me?” Ally asked; panic laced her voice and met her ears. It had been almost two months since she’d last seen CeCe.

  Her cousin, Veronica, rolled her big blue eyes. “My daughter is not going to forget her favourite person in the world.”

  Ally chewed her lip as she walked to CeCe’s bedroom. After she had agreed to legitimately work for the family company, Ally almost threw up from excitement. The first person she had wanted to call was Rob, and then Stevie. But she had decided against it. Instead, she had Serge drive to her cousin’s house in Darling Point. It was one of New South Wales’ most lucrative suburbs outside of Sydney. When Veronica had divorced her husband when CeCe was one, she had taken her husband to court and taken half of his fortune to teach him a lesson. Veronica already had her own money, but she took her cheating husband for all that he had. She had a daughter she wanted to protect and provide for.

  Once at her little cousin’s door, Ally knocked lightly and then let herself in. When she peeked inside, CeCe was on the floor reading to a baseball shirt wearing Snoopy and Sock Money plush toys. Ally crept into the room as CeCe continued to read a fairy book. When she was close, Ally bent down next to her and asked, “Miss me?”

  CeCe dropped the book and jumped into her arms. “Ally!”

  Ally hugged the almost five-year-old tightly, realising just how much she loved and missed her. “How are you, baby?”

  “I’ve missed you,” CeCe said once she pulled away.

  Glancing down, she noticed her cousin sporting a very adorable Red Sox jersey complete with curly blonde pigtails fastened with red bows. “Now, who got you all of this?” she asked, already knowing the answer.

  The little girl beamed as she quickly picked up the Snoopy and Sock Monkey, showing them off to her. “Clary and Noel sent them to me.” Then she used the Sock Monkey to point at the pin board on her dresser. The same pin board Ally had gotten her to put all the postcards she had collected on her travels. “Clary sent me a postcard, too. Mummy put it with yours.”

  Ally smiled at the sight; though it stung to do so, she couldn’t help it. CeCe used the Sock Monkey’s hand and set it on Ally’s mouth. Ally looked at her to see her focused on her stitches and the bruised side of her face.

  “You’re hurt.”

  She pursed her lips and kissed the Sock Monkey’s hand. “I’d feel better if you’d come outside and play. I’ll let you catch me this time.”

  Her big blue eyes shone. “Only if Noel and Clary can come.”

  Ally took the toys off her and stared at them. “Which one is Noel and which one is Clara?”

  CeCe giggled and then turned towards her bed. She picked up a Hello Kitty plush that had a Boston Red Sox cap on and announced, “This is Noel!”

  For the first time in weeks, she laughed like she meant it.

  “You’re gonna have to let me record you saying that so I can send it to him. Come on, let’s go play.”

  “Oh my, God.” Ally panted for breath. “She’s going to kill me. How does she have that much energy? And how did she manage to get Serge to push her on that swing? He’s my bodyguard!”

  Veronica laughed as she set down the jug of fruit punch cordial on the outdoor table. “It’s those big blue eyes of hers. When she gets older, I’m going to have my hands full.”

  “Yeah, boys everywhere, Ver,” Ally teased.

  Her cousin huffed and swept her blonde hair over her shoulder. “You’re gonna make an amazing mother someday, Ally. The way you love and treat CeCe. I honestly can’t wait for that day. To see you with your own.”

  Ally averted her cousin’s gaze and stared back at CeCe and Serge. Unable to keep her tears at bay, she attempted to blink them away quickly.

  “Hey,” Veronica said, concerned. She grasped Ally’s arm and pulled her to face her. “Why are you crying?”

  Ally quickly wiped her cheeks, not caring that she’d put pressure on her bruise. “I can’t have kids, okay?”

  Her cousin’s mouth made an ‘O’ as she blinked. “You can’t?”

  “No,” Ally confessed. “I just can’t. I’m never gonna know what that feels like. But I guess, in a way, it’s a blessing. I’d never disappoint my children with my past.”

  “How? What do you mean you can
’t?” Veronica set her hand on Ally’s shoulder.

  “I can’t. My doctor said it’s too—” Ally paused as her phone vibrated in her pants pocket. When she pulled it out, she noticed it was Stevie. She sighed in relief, happy not to confess to her cousin just why she couldn’t be a mother, and answered the call. “I have to take this,” she excused herself.

  Veronica wrapped her hand around Ally’s arm. “We’re gonna talk about this, okay?”

  Ally nodded and then pulled her arm free. She walked away from her cousin and towards the pool on the other side of Veronica’s massive backyard. Ally glanced down at her screen to see the seconds tick over. She took a deep breath and brought her phone to her ear. “Hello.”

  “Ally, are you okay?” Stevie asked, her voice full of concern.

  “I’m all right.”

  “You just took off.”

  The hurt in Stevie’s voice made Ally flinch. The pain in her chest from telling her cousin that she couldn’t have a child now increased. She hadn’t wanted to hurt her best friend. She took the cowardice way out. “I know. And I’m so sorry. Yesterday, so much happened and I don’t know. I was just overwhelmed. I had to come home, Stevie. My family needs me.”

  “This is going to sound really selfish, but I need you here, too. So does Julian and even Rob.”

  It ate her up inside not knowing his welfare. But she had to know. “Is he okay?”

  Stevie let out a sigh. “God, you love him. You get punched by that bitch and you ask about him. He’s okay. But you guys are twins.”

  Twins.

  Ally’s brows furrowed. “What?”

  “Julian punched him. And then Rob went to find out if you still had a job and Mitch punched him before he could ask. It’s been a hell of a morning. Are you coming back? Please tell me you’re just visiting your parents.”

  Ally glanced over to see CeCe hugging Serge, and she smiled. Sydney wasn’t so bad. She had her own apartment and a job. Next semester, she’d apply for the University of Sydney. But right now, she only had one more social event. No more Allison O’Connor, Sydney socialite. She was Allison O’Connor, temporary director of operations at O’Connor Investments. “I’m staying, Stevie. My family needs me. Liam’s stepped down to go find himself, so things are happening here that I can’t walk away from.”